SPIN DOCTORS
''IF THE RIVER WAS WHISKEY''
2013
43:23
1. Some Other Man Instead /4:35
2. If the River Was Whiskey /3:17
3. Sweetest Portion /4:02
4. Traction Blues /3:42
5. Scotch and Water Blues /5:16
6. About a Train /6:14
7. The Drop /4:40
8. Ben's Looking out the Window Blues /3:09
9. So Bad /5:56
10. What My Love? /2:32
REVIEW
"If The River Was Whiskey", the Spin Doctors' sixth studio album and the first since their critically acclaimed 2005 disc "Nice Talking To Me", is set for a May 14, 2013 US and European release via Ruf Records, a German blues-oriented record label. "Whiskey" was recorded in Aaron Comess' His House Studio in a three day recording session last July and features pure Spin Doctors, without any additional overdubs.
The ten blues songs are a mix of brand new and very old material: while the album's title track and "Some Other Man Instead" were written just last year, some other songs such as "So Bad" or "Sweetest Portion" date back to the very early days of the band in the late 80s when Chris Barron, Aaron Comess, Mark White and Eric Schenkman had to play blues bars in New York to make a living being musicians. Instead of covering blues standards, the band wrote an entire repertoire of original blues songs.
The core tracks of this repertoire are featured on the brillant new album, songs such as "Traction Blues", "The Drop", "Ben's Looking Out The Window Blues". A special treat for all old school Spin Doctors fans is the new version of "About A Train". The song was part of the 1996 album "You've Got To Believe In Something". Compared to the original song from the early days, the 1996 take had different lyrics and a a more stream lined chorus and arrangement. With original guitarist Eric Schenkman back in the band since 2001, the band revived the primary arrangement and finally recorded it.
MORE REVIEW
First studio album since "Nice Talking To Me" (2005). Produced by Spin Doctors, recorded & mixed by Roman Klun, mastered by Ted Jensen. Includes two brand new blues tunes (tracks 1, 2), five previously unrecorded and unreleased songs from the band's early days (tracks 3, 4, 7, 8 and 9) and three re-arrangements and re-recordings of previously released material (tracks 5, 6 and 10). Sold during the band's UK and Spain tour 2013. Official release scheduled for May 14th, 2013.
BIOGRAPHY
by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Pocket Full of Kryptonite
There were many pseudo-hippie, jam-oriented blues rockers in New York during the early '90s, but only the Spin Doctors made it big. And they made it big because they not only could immerse themselves in a groove, but they also had concise pop skills. "Little Miss Can't Be Wrong" and "Two Princes" were cleverly written singles, full of clean, blues-inflected licks and ingratiating pop melodies. Pocket Full of Kryptonite had been around for nearly a year when MTV and radio began playing "Little Miss Can't Be Wrong," but once they started playing it, they couldn't stop. the Spin Doctors became an overnight sensation, selling millions of albums around the world.
Turn It Upside Down
Their second album, 1994's Turn It Upside Down, didn't sell very well when it was released, largely because the first single, "Cleopatra's Cat," was a failed experiment in funk. But the second single, "You Let Your Heart Go Too Fast," was in the vein of "Two Princes," and the album began to sell after the song was released. In the summer of 1996, the Spin Doctors released You've Got to Believe in Something. After the album failed to make an impression on the charts, the Spin Doctors were dropped from Epic in the fall of 1996. After a couple of years, the group found a new label; their first record for Uptown/Universal, Here Comes the Bride, appeared in the summer of 1999. It was seemingly their swan song, however. By this point original members Eric Schenkman (guitar) and Mark White (bass) had left the band, and Barron's voice was failing him. The Spin Doctors broke up, and the greatest hits set Just Go Ahead Now appeared like a nail in their coffin. Their journey wasn't quite over, however. The band reunited for a series of shows in 2001 and 2002, and they used that momentum to head back into the studio, where they recorded Nice Talking to Me. The album was released by Ruff Nation/Universal in fall 2005.
''IF THE RIVER WAS WHISKEY''
2013
43:23
1. Some Other Man Instead /4:35
2. If the River Was Whiskey /3:17
3. Sweetest Portion /4:02
4. Traction Blues /3:42
5. Scotch and Water Blues /5:16
6. About a Train /6:14
7. The Drop /4:40
8. Ben's Looking out the Window Blues /3:09
9. So Bad /5:56
10. What My Love? /2:32
REVIEW
"If The River Was Whiskey", the Spin Doctors' sixth studio album and the first since their critically acclaimed 2005 disc "Nice Talking To Me", is set for a May 14, 2013 US and European release via Ruf Records, a German blues-oriented record label. "Whiskey" was recorded in Aaron Comess' His House Studio in a three day recording session last July and features pure Spin Doctors, without any additional overdubs.
The ten blues songs are a mix of brand new and very old material: while the album's title track and "Some Other Man Instead" were written just last year, some other songs such as "So Bad" or "Sweetest Portion" date back to the very early days of the band in the late 80s when Chris Barron, Aaron Comess, Mark White and Eric Schenkman had to play blues bars in New York to make a living being musicians. Instead of covering blues standards, the band wrote an entire repertoire of original blues songs.
The core tracks of this repertoire are featured on the brillant new album, songs such as "Traction Blues", "The Drop", "Ben's Looking Out The Window Blues". A special treat for all old school Spin Doctors fans is the new version of "About A Train". The song was part of the 1996 album "You've Got To Believe In Something". Compared to the original song from the early days, the 1996 take had different lyrics and a a more stream lined chorus and arrangement. With original guitarist Eric Schenkman back in the band since 2001, the band revived the primary arrangement and finally recorded it.
MORE REVIEW
First studio album since "Nice Talking To Me" (2005). Produced by Spin Doctors, recorded & mixed by Roman Klun, mastered by Ted Jensen. Includes two brand new blues tunes (tracks 1, 2), five previously unrecorded and unreleased songs from the band's early days (tracks 3, 4, 7, 8 and 9) and three re-arrangements and re-recordings of previously released material (tracks 5, 6 and 10). Sold during the band's UK and Spain tour 2013. Official release scheduled for May 14th, 2013.
BIOGRAPHY
by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Pocket Full of Kryptonite
There were many pseudo-hippie, jam-oriented blues rockers in New York during the early '90s, but only the Spin Doctors made it big. And they made it big because they not only could immerse themselves in a groove, but they also had concise pop skills. "Little Miss Can't Be Wrong" and "Two Princes" were cleverly written singles, full of clean, blues-inflected licks and ingratiating pop melodies. Pocket Full of Kryptonite had been around for nearly a year when MTV and radio began playing "Little Miss Can't Be Wrong," but once they started playing it, they couldn't stop. the Spin Doctors became an overnight sensation, selling millions of albums around the world.
Turn It Upside Down
Their second album, 1994's Turn It Upside Down, didn't sell very well when it was released, largely because the first single, "Cleopatra's Cat," was a failed experiment in funk. But the second single, "You Let Your Heart Go Too Fast," was in the vein of "Two Princes," and the album began to sell after the song was released. In the summer of 1996, the Spin Doctors released You've Got to Believe in Something. After the album failed to make an impression on the charts, the Spin Doctors were dropped from Epic in the fall of 1996. After a couple of years, the group found a new label; their first record for Uptown/Universal, Here Comes the Bride, appeared in the summer of 1999. It was seemingly their swan song, however. By this point original members Eric Schenkman (guitar) and Mark White (bass) had left the band, and Barron's voice was failing him. The Spin Doctors broke up, and the greatest hits set Just Go Ahead Now appeared like a nail in their coffin. Their journey wasn't quite over, however. The band reunited for a series of shows in 2001 and 2002, and they used that momentum to head back into the studio, where they recorded Nice Talking to Me. The album was released by Ruff Nation/Universal in fall 2005.
